system rquirements

[sri3850341]

been an ongoing project,how to setup and all. and now i want to build a machine (pc) to handle any and all emulators pertaining to classic gaming.. i now have an older aopen m/b and 1 1/2 gig ram (333 pc2700) and game ex runs slow and some games run slow .onboard video.has agp purple looking slot without white clip to mount to slot but is used for "add" whatever the hell that is..what machine can i build with new components that wont break the bank???

cpu,memory,video card,what are you guys that have seemless mame using for pc's that arent overkill/expensive?i'll build my pc from stuff off new egg and stuff...thinking 2.0 ghz,2 gig ram,and 256 pcie,sata 250gb

any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...........shane

[bkenobi]

Most people recommend a core 2 duo. I haven't checked of late, but I don't think they would "break the bank" with current prices. You can use onboard video for most things, but if you want Saturn or newer games, you will probably want a decent video card. 1+ gb ram and a good sized hard drive and you should be on your way for <$400 I would think.

[GeorgeT]

I thought people were recommending 64 bit now to get games like NFL Blitz working full speed?

[bkenobi]

Core 2 are 64-bit though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Core_2

But, that does bring up a good point. If you want to play the newer 3D games, you need to run a 64-bit CPU and OS. I think most people would opt for WinXP 64 over Vista 64, but I'm sure either would work fine.

[Belinda]

64-bit XP is better than 32-bit for running the later console emulators?? ie PS2 emulator.

PC i'm using is AMD Athlonx2 @ about 2.8 with 2 gig of RAM and Nvidia 8600.

Games run ok, until i get to the later console emulators PS2, Dreamcast etc then it's hit and miss depending on which game is being emulated.

[Brian Hoffman]

64-bit XP is better than 32-bit for running the later console emulators?? ie PS2 emulator.

PC i'm using is AMD Athlonx2 @ about 2.8 with 2 gig of RAM and Nvidia 8600.

Games run ok, until i get to the later console emulators PS2, Dreamcast etc then it's hit and miss depending on which game is being emulated.

My intel core 2 duo 2.6 can play 99% of dreamcast games fine at full speed.

Just thought Id throw that out there. The Intel chips hands down out perform the AMD. I used to really be an AMD fanboy.

[Belinda]

My intel core 2 duo 2.6 can play 99% of dreamcast games fine at full speed.

Just thought Id throw that out there. The Intel chips hands down out perform the AMD. I used to really be an AMD fanboy.

Well La-De-Daaaaa

So have you tried running stuff in both XP 32 and XP 64? And was there any difference?

Am I right in assuming having a better graphics card will help running Dreamcast and PS2 games ie they more GPU limited than CPU? Or does emulation also take a big chunk of CPU resources?

Don't think i'm stealing this post as it is relevant to system requirements.

[bkenobi]

MAME is essentially 100% CPU performance based since it has no graphics acceleration. If you use ZiNc, Model2, or one of the other emus that run MAME roms, then you will see some benefit from an upgraded video card (over an onboard one), but I'm not sure how to quantify the difference. I suppose it depends on your CPU whether you will notice the GPU difference. As for console emulators, you will definitely benefit from a better graphics card depending on the system you are emulating (also assuming your CPU is fast enough so as not to be the bottle neck).

[Belinda]

I just use any old bog standard versions really and emulators that i know. If it's running most stuff ok i'm usually a happy pixie. I should try new versions (Model2 etc)really but i come from a small village called Ludd....sooooo.....

Thanks for the replys.

[GotMame]

I am finishing up a build for a friend and told him to purchase this particular computer.

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?...〈=en-US

It runs Carnevil at full frames. I haven't tried every intensive game yet, but it seems to work great. I installed Future Pinball and seems to run the tables good. Unfortunately, I am still using an old P4 and am crying that I need to give this one up.

I have 64 bit Mame running on Vista and everything is running perfectly. Even Daphne games, not that they take much cpu.

Processor & Memory:

Intel® Core� 2 Quad Processor Q8300 (2.5GHz)

4MB L2 cache

1333MHz Front Side Bus

Intel G31 / ICH7 chipset

4GB DDR2 SDRAM memory (2 x 2GB, shared)

Drives:

1TB (7,200RPM) SATA Hard Drive

22x max DVD±RW dual layer optical drive

Front panel 19-in-1 Multimedia digital card reader

Graphics & Video:

Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3100

[bkenobi]

Nice machine. A bit out of most people's budget IMO. But, if you can swing it, then a nice choice.